March 28, 2009

European Council agrees on "European Economic Recovery Plan"

According to the agreement, the funds will be directed to energy, internet and rural life projects.

“The agreement that has been reached is very important for Estonia,” Prime Minister Andrus Ansip commented. “It is important for us that the European Union has contributed to the establishment of energy communities everywhere in Europe. With the pan, Estonia and Finland have been allocated EUR 100 million for the development of the undersea electricity cable Estlink 2.”

At the same time, the European Council agreed on the further directions of the development of the energy security policy and the implementation of the Baltic Interconnection Plan is seen as one of the priorities in this area.

At the summit of the European Union, the messages that the European Union will take to the G20 summit of leading industrial countries were also harmonised. At the G20 meeting, options will be discussed for overcoming the global financial and economic crisis.

According to Ansip, Europe, with its positive example, has been a leading force in the process of handling the crisis.

Climate issues were discussed in relation to the United Nations Climate Chance Conference that will be held in Copenhagen in December of this year. No specific positions were formed at this summit for the conference yet.

Prime Minister Andrus Ansip was satisfied that the Council held the first more serious discussion over the so-called Eastern Partnership. This involves the closer linking of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus with the European Union.

“Estonia supports a very close Eastern Partnership,” said Ansip. “This assumes the support and funding of the European Union for the target countries of the Eastern Partnership, the conclusion of association agreements, economic integration, future visa freedom, and substantial co-operation in energy and transport issues,”

On Thursday, before the beginning of the Council, Andrus Ansip met with Joaquin Almunia, the Monetary Affairs Commissioner of the European Commission, and the economic and financial situation was discussed. Ansip confirmed the wish of the Estonian government to join the euro area as soon as possible.

Ansip stressed that Estonia wishes to join the euro area on the basis of the existing criteria and is not demanding any concessions. He added that Estonia wishes for close co-operation with the European Commission in the process of transitioning to the euro.

In addition to Prime Minister Andrus Ansip, Minister of Finance Ivari Padar from the Estonian government also attended the meeting of the European Council.

Aside from the Estlink-2 undersea power cable project, the project to build a gas link between Estonia and Latvia also stands to receive support from the EU's economic stimulus package.

The size of the EU allocation for the gas link project is 6.7 million euros.

Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said after the EU summit on Friday that according to the summit's decision, Estonia will receive 8.3 million euros as support to develop broadband Internet. Other areas that are to be supported in Estonia include agriculture, said the prime minister.

It has been announced previously that Estlink-2 would get 100 million euros in EU support.

Estonia is contributing 117 million kroons to the five billion euro EU aid package but stands to get significantly more as recipient, the premier added.